This most recent iteration of Garmin's flagship Fenix adventure timepiece introduces a potentially lifesaving feature: no-phone messaging and emergency messaging via 4G LTE or satellite connections.
The Fenix 8 Pro upgrades the already impressive Fenix 8 by adding cutting-edge mobile tech, plus an available state-of-the-art microLED screen in a special edition. It is the brand's premier device and designed to be the single gadget required to explore virtually anywhere and monitor all your movements.
This makes it an very pricey proposition, priced from £1,030 (€1,200, $1,200, A$2,300) for the 47mm OLED model and reaching a colossal £1,730 (€2,000/$2,000/A$3,399) for the 51mm variant with microLED screen – almost double the price of the regular Fenix 8.
Users receive a significant functionality for your investment, with best-in-class workout, activity and outdoor monitoring. Its full offline mapping of the world can seamlessly direct you back to the trail if you lose your way absent a phone, and appear great on the large, crisp and high-luminance display.
This Fenix 8 Pro is exclusively available in 47mm or 51mm case sizes, not the smaller 43mm version found in other devices, so it is a big watch for larger wrists. But the 47mm OLED model as reviewed boasts an additional day of watch battery life despite the screen on all the time, lasting a solid eight to nine days between charges.
No-Phone Texting, Calls and Real-Time Location
The company operates its proprietary inReach LTE (4G) and orbital service service rather than depending on a watch plan linked to your mobile carrier, as with other wearables. But unlike competing satellite-capable devices, SOS messaging is not provided for no cost.
Rather, plans begin from £7.99 or equivalent a month, which provides unlimited LTE text and audio messaging, call functionality and LiveTrack position sharing – so your contacts or family can keep an eye on you while engaged in jogging, biking or similar pursuits – along with SOS satellite SOS messaging.
Location updates and texts via satellite are then charged on top, with more expensive plans offering various quotas of orbital use, increasing to a £50 a month all-inclusive subscription. The watch includes a 30-day free trial so you can test out the functionality.
After you have completed setup, you simply venture the door minus your phone and the watch will connect to LTE. You can not use it for streaming music or similar activities, but you can make and take calls, dispatch texts and overall stay connected with your relatives and companions.
Whenever you message someone, Garmin dispatches them an SMS from a random number, which they can reply to directly to your watch. If they install the Garmin Messenger application, you can then communicate back and forth using typed or voice messages, and initiate voice calls. Your recipient is not required to have a Garmin profile to use the Messenger application, just a phone number is enough to register for texts.
Messaging on the watch functions adequately but composing texts on the small on-screen keyboard is slow. It has a set of customisable canned replies you can use to speed things up. Voice recordings and calls perform OK, although as with most wearables, you’re unlikely going to want to use it for lengthy discussions as the quality is not ideal.
LiveTrack is the handiest feature. You can configure to automatically send a link to chosen contacts every time you begin an activity, so they can follow your live location on a map. It’s excellent for monitoring race progress, but it mostly acts as a utility for someone you rely on to know your whereabouts in case something happens. It has generally functioned well, although the real position has occasionally lagged when transitioning in and out of good LTE coverage.
All of these capabilities are available on other Garmin watches if you bring your phone with you, but in areas where LTE does not reach, the satellite kicks in on the Fenix 8 Pro to send texts, location updates and emergency SOS.
A guide shows you how to find the clear view to the satellite, which then transmits and gets communications within about 10 to 30 seconds. It was surprisingly straightforward to use and could be a vital lifeline, however it is essential to remember that orbital coverage is limited to the US continent, most of Canada, and the majority of Europe except for parts of Scandinavia north of 65 degrees north.
Sustainability
The watch is generally serviceable with options available through the customer service site. The battery is certified to retain at least 90% of its original power after two years of regular charging. The watch does not contain any recycled components. Garmin provides recycling schemes on new purchases.
Price
The Fenix 8 Pro is priced from £1,029.99 (€1,199.99/$1,199.99/A$2,299). The optional Garmin inReach service plans cost from £7.99 (€9.99/$7.99/A$13.50).
Conclusion
This Fenix 8 Pro builds on a fantastic outdoor watch in the standard Fenix 8 and incorporates LTE for messaging, calls and LiveTrack – plus orbital communication, check-in and SOS SOS for when you’re without coverage.
Outcome is an increasingly remarkable outdoor device for those that want to be unplugged. If you want to have someone keep an eye on you from afar while running out at night or in the remote areas, the Garmin does so without needing anything else.
It is very freeing to be outside without a phone, but that capability comes at quite a cost, both in terms of the substantial cost of the watch and the monthly fee of the inReach plan to provide the features. At least it is not reliant on your phone carrier so functions with all make of smartphone and carrier.
The Fenix 8 Pro is a killer gadget for someone who hates being burdened by their phone when jogging, biking or hiking, but still desires to be trackable and reachable. For other users, it is a significant money when the superb Fenix 8 is already available.
Pros: LTE and orbital communication, high-luminance OLED screen, monitors all activities with best-in-class GPS, built-in flashlight, phone and offline commands, 8+ day battery life, Garmin Pay, full offline maps and routes, offline Spotify, 100-metre water resistance and 40-metre underwater use, buttons and touch.
Drawbacks: very costly, LTE and satellite functions require ongoing payment, restricted Garmin Pay financial support, voice capabilities are slow, limited smartwatch functionality compared with Apple/Google/Samsung watches.
